


When We Were Young

by written_in_starlight



Series: The Astral Chronicles [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Blood, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Magic, this was the start of me realizing i was accidentally turning jared into elsa oop
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-27
Updated: 2019-12-28
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:35:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21978943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/written_in_starlight/pseuds/written_in_starlight
Summary: A glimpse into the childhoods of the four Astral teenagers.
Series: The Astral Chronicles [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1468171





	1. Finn and Jared

**Author's Note:**

> This is entirely inspired by a tumblr post about how important platonic relationships are and then I started thinking about Jared and Finn's partnership and this first chapter is what came from that lol

When Finn is five years old, his father is a part of the royal guard. When allowed, Finn will follow his father around, mimicking every movement, wanting nothing more than to follow in his father’s footsteps.

When Finn is five, his days are spent roaming the castle with the prince and princess. Melody Rose is his age, and Finn thinks she’s pretty, though he’d never admit _that_. They play to their imaginations’ content, slowed only by three-year-old Jacob Tiberius.

When Finn is five, he spends his afternoons swinging a toy sword around, trying to copy the guards’ drills he’s watched. He’s going to grow up and join the royal guard like his father, and he’s going to protect Princess Melody Rose when she becomes queen. Sometimes, Melody Rose will join him, and they’ll spar together, little wooden swords clashing in the golden light. Melody Rose refuses to be a damsel in distress. Finn will stand at her side throughout it all.

Finn is five, and his days are golden, and his future is laid out in front of him.

When Finn is five, the peace is shattered. The castle is invaded, and the king and queen lie dead in their thrones, surrounded by the bodies of their guards. Finn’s father is among them. Finn’s mother wakes him and sneaks him out of the castle, hiding amongst the confusion and fear taking over. Finn tries to find Melody Rose and Jake in the mess. He can find neither, but sees the court mage Ashe slipping out, a small, six-year-old-sized bundle in his arms. Finn narrows his eyes as his mother tugs him along.

When Finn is five, the traitor Maddox murders the king and queen of Astral, and takes their young son hostage. Rumor has it that Princess Melody Rose Miles managed to escape the castle, and is still alive and in hiding. And according to prophecy given just months ago, she is the last hope of Astral.

When Jared is five years old, his and Will’s magic manifest at almost the same time. Jared’s magic swirls the snow and ice into pretty patterns, tinged emerald green. His uncle tells him this is very typical of mages who tend towards elemental manipulation. Meanwhile, Will wakes up screaming from nightmares most nights, his magic manifesting into star-sight. Jared starts learning the basics of magic from his uncle, Will more often than not curling up on his shoulder to take cat naps.

When Jared is five, he and Will and Mathias spend their days tumbling through snow, careful not to stray too far from the village “lest the dragons take you.” But other than the dark, forbidding peak of Stormking, the mountains are their playground. Mathias claims they’re on top of the world. Jared agrees. Will just sighs and curls up in his little snow den, already cozy enough to take another nap.

When Jared is five, his twin brother speaks for the last time. It starts out as another nightmare, but this time Will isn’t incoherent when he wakes. His frantic babbling is too fast for Jared’s sleepy brain to comprehend, but their father is on his feet in an instant, crouching by Will, asking him to repeat himself. Jared can catch a few more words this time; “princess”, “stranger”, “Maddox”. As Will stumbles into inconsolable crying, Jared climbs into bed with him to protect his barely-younger brother from the world that sees fit to give him these nightmares. And when they wake in the morning, Will won’t, _can’t_ say a word. His last words were a prophecy, telling of the fall of Astral, and its salvation.

Jared is five, and his days are silver. Dark clouds are gathering on the horizon, but Jared has faith that the mountains will protect them from what’s coming.

Jared and Will have just turned six when the news finally comes. The king and queen are dead. A man called Maddox has seized the throne. The prince Jacob Tiberius is held hostage. His older sister, Melody Rose, is in hiding. And now Maddox’s army is traveling across Astral, forcing the rest of the kingdom into submission and searching for the lost princess. Jared and Will listen in on the messenger telling their parents the news. Will’s grip is tight and his eyes are wide, and Jared tries to comfort his brother in whatever silent way he can.

When Jared is five, the king and queen are murdered.

When Jared is eight, Maddox’s army finally makes it to his tiny village in the northern mountains.

When Finn is six years old, he leaves his mother and goes after the court mage Ashe. People are saying Melody Rose is in hiding, but Finn knows what he saw. If he can find Ashe, maybe he can find Melody Rose.

Finn is six, but people are all too used to seeing children without their parents. Maddox is not known for his mercy, after all. A few are just helpful enough to keep pointing Finn in the right direction to keep following Ashe.

When Finn is six, he finally finds Ashe, just a glimpse in a crowded market square. Finn is far shorter than everybody else in the crowd, but Ashe is tall and easy to spot, and Finn can weave through strangers’ legs to try and catch up to him.

When Finn is six, he confronts Ashe Vella about his escape from the palace, the night Maddox took over. He demands to know where Melody Rose is, until the princess herself reveals herself. Ashe helped her escape and disguised her, and now they are on the run.

When Finn is six, he finds his best friend alive, and swears right then and there to protect her to the best of his ability until Maddox is defeated and she is safe again. Melody Rose scowls and tells him she’s not a damsel in distress who needs a knight to save her. Finn is no knight in shining armor, and he doesn’t want to save her. He just wants to protect her when her skills falter.

When Finn is six, he starts traveling with Ashe and Melody Rose, heading for the Western Kingdom. The West is still free, if only for now, and if they’re going to find any sort of resistance, any support for when Melody Rose will eventually take back the throne, that is where they’d find it.

Jared is eight when soldiers finally show up on his doorstep. He had known they were coming, listening in whenever somebody would share news with his parents and uncle. The takeover is relatively calm; nobody in Jared’s village is a warrior, and nobody will fight back. Jared keeps between any soldiers and Will, protecting his brother. He knows Maddox would exploit Will’s star-sight. He refuses to let Will suffer any more than he already has.

When Jared is eight, Will is sleeping fitfully, and Jared is listening to his parents whispers through the cracked door. The winters are harsh and hard to survive even on good years, but it seems since Maddox took over he intends to starve them. Jared’s father hisses at the unfairness, how the north is being punished for the south’s actions. Jared’s mother hushes him. Will has silently woken, and Jared meets his eye in the dark of their room. Jared doesn’t need his brother’s star-sight to know what’s going to happen.

When Jared is eight, he wakes up to the snow stained red with blood. Jared’s father is dead, his body tossed carelessly in the center of town with the others who tried to rebel. Mathias’s father is one of them. The next night, Mathias and his mother disappear.

When Jared is eight, he doesn’t sleep. All he sees is red when he closes his eyes, and his bones ache with cold as the fires die down. His mother and uncle stay up late every night, plotting. So when his mother knocks on his door in the dead of night, Jared and Will are both ready.

When Jared is eight, he escapes the village he called home with his mother, uncle, and twin brother. Their plan is to leave the Dragon Ridge, the only place any of them have ever known, and take their chances trying to find the resistance in the lowlands.

When Jared is eight, they are chased through the mountains. Jared and Will are far ahead, knowing how to traverse the mountains better than the soldiers and younger and faster than the adults. The soldiers are on their mother’s heels. She yells at them to run. Their uncle commands Jared to use his magic, leave them behind and run. And with a sob, Jared tugs at his wild, barely controlled magic, and the snow starts to tumble down the slopes, cutting them off from pursuit. Cutting off the last adults in their lives from escape.

Jared is eight, and responsible for the deaths of his mother and uncle, and Will’s quiet acceptance tells him he’s probably known for ages. So Jared takes Will’s hand, and they follow their mother’s last command and run, away from the mountains that hold everything familiar to them.

When Finn is nine, two boys stumble into the resistance, half-starved and barely upright. Melody Rose (disguised as just Rose) sighs sadly when she sees them. They’re no older than Finn or herself, and yet Maddox has taken his toll on their families as well.

When Finn is nine, he is called before the council of the resistance. There, he is told they will begin training him in earnest, as a pair with a mage. The boy’s name is Jared, and he looks barely more substantial than the other boy he arrived with. But when he grabs Finn’s arm, his grip is sure, and his green eyes are sharp, and Finn knows he shouldn’t underestimate this mage.

When Finn is nine, Jared stumbles and falls through the exercises Finn has been doing for just about his whole life. When Finn offers help, he snaps back, rejecting Finn’s _pity_. Finn knows better than to pity him. Everybody in the resistance has lost somebody, Finn himself included, and pity gets old very quick. But offering help on something that Finn has done his entire life and Jared has not, that isn’t pity. That’s being smart, making Jared a better fighter, and increasing their chances of beating Maddox. Jared’s green eyes are narrowed, but he takes Finn’s hand without any further snapping.

When Finn is nine, there are nights he can’t sleep. And one of these nights, he finds Jared just outside of the tent he shares with Will, crouched in front of a dying fire, shivering slightly. Finn silently kneels next to him. Maybe it’s the fact he knows now that Finn won’t pity him, maybe he needs to share, maybe the silence is just getting to him, but Jared slowly opens up, haltingly speaking in heavily accented common. About his life in the mountains, before Maddox. His father’s rebellion, his escape with his mother and uncle and brother. His mother and uncle’s sacrifice for him and Will. How it’s so much warmer here than in the mountains, but Jared can’t shake the chill from his bones. Finn tells him of his father’s work in the royal guard, his escape from the capital that fateful night, how he had tracked down Rose and joined her in coming to and being the start of the resistance. And the boys watch the sun rise together.

When Jared is eleven, Ashe and Rose approach him and Finn. The Council has decided to send Ashe and Rose to track down the hidden princess, and Rose knows that Finn will follow her wherever she goes. Jared, as Finn’s battle partner, doesn’t have to accompany him, but probably should. Jared agrees to join, under one condition. Will also comes with. Ashe scoffs about how there is a _lot_ of responsibility and Will would just be dead weight. Jared argues that he won’t be separated from Will, not _now_ , and he’ll even teach Will how to defend himself with knives so he’s not the damsel in distress of their group. He sees Rose smirk. She has no objections. And Finn both supports Rose and knows how much Will means to Jared. And so Ashe finds himself outnumbered.

So when Jared is eleven, he and Will swear secrecy to Ashe, and then again separately to Rose because she wants to trust them with all the secrets she’s shared with Finn. Which is how the twins find out that their friend is actually Princess Melody Rose Miles, crown princess of Astral and one of those destined to save Astral. When asked why her identity is a secret from the resistance, Rose says it’s at Ashe’s insistence, better to be safely hidden away while they’re waiting for the other the prophecy speaks of to show up. Will nods, and Jared wonders if his star-sight allows him to be properly surprised by anything anymore.

When Finn is fifteen, Melody Rose rescues a boy from Maddox’s soldiers.

When Jared is fifteen, Will looks him in the eye and tells him this boy is the one from the prophecy.

When Finn is sixteen, he kisses Melody Rose for the first time. Just in case, he says, just in case something happens and he wanted her to know. He accepts Melody Rose’s gentle rejection, her request for him to wait. He can wait for her. It took him long enough to accept his feelings, and he’s willing to wait until Maddox is gone to see if she reciprocates them.

When Jared is sixteen, Finn drags him away from Will. Will, who’s too badly injured and is slowing them down. Will, who’s stringing his bow in preparation for one last stand. Will, who is likely sacrificing himself so that Rose and Finn and _Jared_ can survive. And Jared hates watching another family member sacrifice themselves for him.

When Finn is seventeen, Melody Rose kills Maddox and reclaims the throne. Her brother is freed and Astral is full of light again. And in the moonlight, with Ilasea sparkling far below them, Melody Rose kisses Finn back.

When Jared is seventeen, he and Will return to their home in the mountains. The building still stands, empty and neglected for nearly ten years. But Jared can’t shake the feeling of not fitting in, and he knows Will’s thoughts are far away, set on a girl with a silver engagement chain woven in her dark hair. So Jared takes Will’s hand, still getting used to his new prosthetic arm, and the twins leave the mountains for the last time.


	2. Melody and Will

When Melody is six, life is simple. Her parents love her and her little brother is adorable and annoying in that way only younger brothers can be. Her best friend won’t tame down their adventures because she’s a girl, and the castle is wide open and free to them.

When Melody is six, her life is planned out. She is the eldest, and thusly the crown princess. One day, when her parents step down, she will be queen of Astral. It’s a little daunting for her, but she knows that time won’t come for years. She’s beginning to learn how to be a queen, but there’s still plenty of time for playing with Finn and Jake.

When Melody is six, Finn is five and dead set on being a royal guard. She catches him practicing, mimicking his father and practicing how to wield his toy sword. Melody refuses to stand by helplessly while others protect her, so she joins Finn in his practice. He’s a patient teacher and accepts her determination with a toothy smile.

Melody is six, and life is quiet and simple, the future far away and perfectly planned.

When Melody is six, her life is changed in one night. The court mage Ashe Vella wakes her and briefly explains. She is in danger, and he is here to smuggle her out of the castle for her safety. Melody tries to insist that Ashe go back for Jake, but Ashe shushes her, tells her he’ll go back for Jake once she is safe.

When Melody is six, Maddox invades the castle and murders her parents. While Melody is being smuggled out of the castle, he takes her younger brother hostage. As they hurry through the crowds escaping the palace, Melody hears whispers of a prophecy. That one day, she will become the savior of Astral. Her carefully laid out future has given way to this tenuous, dangerous one.

When Will is five, his days are cold and bright, spent tumbling through the snow with his twin and their best friend, carefully heeding their mothers’ warnings of frostbite and dragons. Jared’s magic sparkles emerald in the cold sunlight, the snow and ice shifting into castles and tunnels and whatever their imaginations require. Other than the dark peak of Stormking, the mountains are their playground.

When Will is five, his nights are dark and stained in blood. More often than not he wakes crying, soon to be comforted by either his parents or his twin. Will grows afraid of sleeping too long. If he sleeps, he’ll have nightmares that will wake him up from terror. Jared accepts his need for cat naps, and refuses to move or disturb Will for as long as he’s asleep on Jared.

When Will is five, he finds he’s unable to speak anymore. It had been a reoccurring problem, where he’d find himself unable to force his words out of his throat, but the morning after he dreams of the prophecy, it’s like a switch has flipped. What was once occasional is now seemingly permanent. And Will starts to practice more with his telepathy so he can still have some sort of a voice.

Will is five, and his days are bright, but he knows the darkness that haunts his dreams is coming.

Will is still five when his star-sight tells him. Maddox has taken over, the king and queen are dead, and their daughter is in hiding. It takes months for the news to reach their secluded village in the northern Dragon Ridge, but when it does Will can’t silence his gasp as Jared holds him close. It is one thing to know it from his visions. It is another to hear it said out loud.

When Will is six, his dreams are still full of blood. But this time, it is not that of the king and queen of Astral. This time, it is his own parents.

When Melody is seven, they reach the Western Kingdom. Maddox’s men have swept through and subdued most of the kingdom by now, but they have to have hope that somewhere out there, others are willing to fight. Ashe spends evenings pouring over maps, figuring out where they can go, how he can keep Melody and Finn safe.

When Melody is seven, Finn still trains with her. Their training is more subdued now. Rather than two children playing with wooden swords, Melody knows she’s going to have to fight to avenge her parents and save her brother. And Finn has promised to stand by her side until she is safe, to protect her when her skills fall short, and he is taking that promise _incredibly_ seriously. But Melody can pull a smile out of her old friend, when she beats him in a sparring match (rarely), or teasing him about something or another.

When Melody is seven, they carefully enter Calcheth, hoping the rumor they’re willing to rebel against Maddox is true. When Ashe cautiously probes the waters in that direction, they’re welcomed with open arms. Calcheth is the only city even somewhat openly rebelling, but most of the budding resistance is gathering in the plains in the southern part of the kingdom.

When Melody is seven, they set off for the rest of the resistance, hope growing stronger with every step.

When Will is eight, Maddox’s soldiers finally arrive. Of course he’d known about it long before hand, as he hadn’t had a solid night’s sleep in the preceding month, but it’s still one thing to know, another to see them at his doorstep. Jared holds his hand tight, tugs him away when soldiers glance in their direction. Will’s parents haven’t discussed his star-sight openly in years, and Will knows why. If Maddox ever knew, he would try to use Will’s visions for his own gain, something none of them want.

When Will is eight, he wakes in the dead of night, and he _knows_. Jared is sitting by the door, still awake, still listening to their parents’ hushed discussions just beyond the closed door. He’s heard every whisper, every lament of the unfair punishment Maddox is forcing upon all the villages in the mountains, every angry declaration of their father. Jared knows. Will _knows_. And when Will closes his eyes, he sees his father’s blood painting the snow red.

When Will is eight, Mathias and his mother disappear. Another inevitability that Will knew about, another loss that’s sharper in person than it is in his dreams. Will’s father is dead. Jared’s green eyes are dark as he shakes and doesn’t sleep. Will’s mother and uncle still hold whispered discussions beyond their closed door, but instead of trying to survive, now they’re trying to escape. Jared hears too much. Will’s dreams tell him too much. When their mother quietly tries to wake them one night, both boys are already awake and ready to leave.

When Will is eight, he doesn’t sleep. Jared curls around him, shaking under their blankets, but Will can’t sleep. If he sleeps, he dreams of blood and death. He’s sure his mother and uncle suspect. He can’t hide the dark circles under his eyes, how he clings to his mother’s side, his uncle’s hand. Early one morning, before Jared is awake, Will’s mother pulls him close and whispers that she’s willing to do whatever it takes to ensure their survival. And if his dreams to come to pass, then as long as he and Jared are safe, she’ll be content.

When Will is eight, his mother screams at them to run, and his uncle orders Jared to use his magic to leave them behind. Jared’s crying as he complies, and the green magic swirls around them as snow starts to tumble down the slopes. Will’s known, but it still _hurts_. But he and Jared honor their mother’s wish and keep running, away from everything they’ve ever known.

When Melody is ten, two boys stumble into the resistance. They look half-starved and are barely upright, but one still has fire in his green eyes, snapping at anybody who tries to separate the two. Melody hates that they’re no older than her or Finn. The green-eyed boy will no doubt become a fighter, once he’s recovered from whatever drove him to the resistance, but he’s no older than them. He’s another child in this fight, likely without much or any family left, like Melody and Finn, likely orphaned by Maddox and his men. And Melody hates it.

When Melody is ten, Finn is paired with a mage to train with. The boy’s name is Jared, and he’s just as sharp and angry as Melody guessed he would be. But he’s quick to learn and eager to fight, and it doesn’t take long for him and Finn to start getting along. His brother, Will, is quiet. Refuses to speak, and instead just watches Jared with scared silver eyes.

When Melody is ten, she learns Will is a telepath. She is watching Finn and Jared train, her eyes more on her old friend, picking up techniques she will eventually badger him to teach her. That’s when she hears Will speak for the first time, telepathically, worrying about Jared. Melody is understandably surprised, but she does what she can to relieve his fears. After all, Finn is incredibly loyal. Jared is his friend, and Finn won’t let his friends get hurt.

When Melody is ten, the resistance is getting restless, wondering where the princess is, wondering how long they’ll have to live in fear of Maddox before he’ll be defeated. Melody wants to tell them who she really is, but Ashe advises silence. After all, he tells her, once people know she is the princess, she will be in danger for as long as Maddox lives. And according to the prophecy, they cannot do anything without the mage from another world. So Melody keeps her tongue, and Finn is quiet and determined in the firelight as he lets her take out her frustration on his wooden sword.

When Will is eleven, he knows far too much. But it is not his secret to tell, so he keeps his silence as he hears the gossip, wondering about the fate of Princess Melody Rose Miles. Whenever Rose overhears the gossip, she either smirks like she knows something they don’t (she does), or she grows upset and frustrated. Will knows the latter is aimed at Ashe, the one who’s keeping her silent.

When Will is eleven, Jared is recruited for Ashe’s “princess search” group. Will is curious why such a group would be necessary, but agrees to stay by his brother’s side. It is then, once they have sworn their silence, that Rose tells them the truth that Will has known for a while, and their true purpose. To better search for the other mage, once they inevitably fall into Astral, and to begin to reassure the resistance of the princess’s survival without revealing Rose’s secret.

When Will is eleven, the night before they leave for the first time, he leaves Jared sleeping soundly in their tent. He is soon joined on his walk by one of his oldest friends in the resistance. Nashira is tall and graceful, the spitting image of her mother, down to following her mother’s footsteps and preparing to join the Council once she’s old enough and her mother chooses to step down. But for now, she is young, barely fourteen, and as she looks at Will, her eyes shine with worry. And Will’s reassurances of safety fall on deaf ears, his own included.

When Melody is sixteen, they’re in Miro for the afternoon when rumors start floating about. Of a boy that Maddox wants dead, for some reason or another. Ashe knows the teenagers he’s saddled himself with, and warns all of them not to look for trouble. Ashe should know that his words of warning hold no weight with them. The four exchange a glance, and as soon as she can, Melody is splitting from the group, heading in the direction of these rumors.

When Melody is sixteen, she tries to barter for the boy’s life, using her well-known reputation as Rose. Unsurprisingly, she isn’t very successful, but she does learn a few things. Maddox’s men will be there by nightfall, to escort the boy out in the dead of night for minimal panic. A usual regiment, nothing special. As Melody stands to leave, she sees the boy in the corner. He’s not obviously a threat, but is very clearly _different_. Melody can only hope her suspicions are correct. 

When Melody is sixteen, Finn and Jared are _wonderful_ at creating distractions. When Melody hops into the wagon carrying the boy, he jumps, metal clanging as his cuffs fall from his wrists. He hisses what sounds like curses in another language, his eyes wide as he stares at Melody. But he recognizes her from earlier, and her obvious rescue is apparently painting her in a good light. And so he lets Melody pull him to his feet, and they make their escape back to camp.

When Will is sixteen, he knows too much and not enough. He sees his sleepless nights mirrored in Aiden’s, and Aiden knows too much and absolutely nothing. And when he finds the red and gold mage curled up by the fire one night, all he can do is murmur apologies for what will happen, for what Will knows, for what he can’t prevent.

When Will is sixteen, late winter in Arkala feels practically balmy to one raised in the bitter cold of the mountains, who just spent the deepest parts of winter back in those mountains. Green-tinged flames roll around Jared’s fingers as he stares up at the lanterns floating overhead. At some point, Starfire leaves her perch on Aiden’s shoulders to soar amongst the lanterns. And on the horizon, Will can see lights floating into the sky, and the symbols of hope light up the night.

When Will is sixteen, his separation from Jared hurts. But rather than sleeplessly pace all night, he lets Nashira drag him from his tent and on a walk around the camp. Nashira fills the silence for as long as Will wants her to, and when he decides he wants to speak, he silences her with a kiss. Nashira asks again what the chain he gave her means. Will’s dreams tell him everything and nothing, and he has no idea what will happen in the fight against Maddox. He’ll tell her when Maddox is dead. That way, he knows she’ll try her hardest to survive, to get her answer, to come back to him.

When Melody is eighteen, she turns away from Maddox’s dead body. There’s Finn in the doorway, supporting a teenager with dark, sunken eyes. And Melody runs for them, and Finn lets go of the boy, and Melody holds her brother for the first time in over ten years. Jake clings to her, whispering how he’d known she’d come for him, he’d always known, and Melody can’t stop her tears or the apologies for leaving him behind that bubble from her lips.

When Will is seventeen, he and Jared return to their home in the mountains. The trip is more for Jared than Will; he’s had years to make his peace with what has and would happen. And as Jared stares at their house, empty and neglected for years, Will can see the realization coming over him. In the mountains, the people they knew are either dead or wouldn’t understand. But they have Finn and Rose and Aiden, and Will knows his brother has been falling for Celia, and Will still has answers for Nashira. So Jared takes Will’s hand, and together they leave the mountains for the last time.


End file.
